A friend was told by a watchmaker that the winding mechanism on "better" watches has two clutches so as stem can be wound forward and backward. Fact or fiction?

I never heard that one before Stephanie.
Brian C.

I can't help but wonder if something didn't get lost in the retelling here. Many people have over the years asked if watches should be wound with the crown being turned "clockwise-only" or if it's OK to go "back and forth" with the crown as they're winding.

Could that be where this question originated?

Like Brian I'm a bit confused here...

<<< Left to right, Brian, Stephanie and me pondering this question.

Never heard of that one before and never saw a watch that wound that way.
Not sure how the click could even engage both ways.

I saw on a collectors show a few years ago ("Personal FX" on FX network) a clock collection. There was a common looking bim-bam striking mantel clock with only one winding post. You turned it one direction to wind the time train, and the other to wind the strike. I have never seen one like it in person. I believe the one company that made them had a patent on the idea and nobody else used it.

I know, not quite the same thing.

Andy

Perhaps this is in reference to autowind movements. There are some that only wind up the movement when the weight rotates in one direction. While the better (and almost all later movements) can wind the mainspring reguardless of the direction of the weight rotation.

There may have been some movements with an independant seconds gear train that wound this way. I do not collect these and am going strictly from memory (which is getting worse as I get older ). These watches had two trains, each with their own mainspring. One spring wound clockwise, one counter-clockwise (anti-clockwise for our friends across the pond). One gear train powered the regular time mechanism, the second train powered the subsidiary seconds, which often made one revolution per second, in 1/4 second jumps. Most of these complex movements would certainly be considered "high grade".

Hi guys,
Sorry for the confusion.

My questions is in reference to a Bulova wristwatch a friend owns. He asked if I would ask the above question on our site.

He told his watchmaker when winding his watch, he can only wind or turn the crown in one direction, forward. The watchmaker responded with "better watches have two clutches in the winding stem for winding "back and forth" and that it was okay to wind watch in on direction. I told my friend I would "spot-check" this watchmaker as it sounds like BS, i.e. two clutches needed to wind back and forth. I've never heard of "better watches" having two clutches for winding back and forth. Fact or fiction or just plain BS?

I am not aware of a Bulova with two clutches I think his watchmaker well I won't go their. There are a few different reasons why but most likely it is lack of lubrication, A bad cluch spring or it got wet. Any of these problems can be corrected.

Two clutches most certainly fiction for a standard mechanical watch.

One other possibility some alarm watches wind the movement mainspring in one direction and the alarm mainspring in the other direction. I you have the alarm set got go off and no wind on it in some models you can't go in one direction. It still only has one clutch.

Thanks Rich for your response and for confirming my suspicions regarding a watchmakers erroneous statement.